Environmentalists demand BAPE hearing into state of Chaudière River

The Gazette06.17.2014

According to government data made public in May, soil samples recovered from the Chaudière River bed in October 2013 contained almost five times more oil sediments than samples recovered just weeks after the train derailment.

Waterfront, concert area planned LAC-MÉGANTIC — The devastated business district of this town of 6,000 will make way for a new waterfront area...

The ecological impact of the Lac-Mégantic train explosion may be far worse than initially thought, according to a Quebec-based environmental group.

After a train carrying millions of litres of crude oil spilled its contents into the Chaudière River last July, the provincial government almost immediately began decontaminating the body of water. The Société pour Vaincre la Pollution (SVP) claims the cleanup effort has had little effect on the river.

According to government data made public in May, soil samples recovered from the river bed in October 2013 contained almost five times more oil sediments than samples recovered just weeks after the train derailment.

“(This) is either due to the decontamination of downtown (Lac-Mégantic), which sent contaminants into the river,” a statement released by SVP reads. “Or there is a continuous spill that hasn’t been confined or maybe there were sudden spills ... between August and October.”

The environmental group is demanding a public hearing by Quebec’s Bureau d’audiences publiques sur l’environment (BAPE) and for the government to temporarily restrict access to the river.

A report by a government panel released in May suggests the Chaudière River is mostly decontaminated and that it’s safe to eat fish harvested from its waters. About 99 fish and 22 birds were killed because of the oil spill. The report also questions what the long-term effects will be on the Chaudière’s riverbed, where fish eggs and micro organisms dwell.

Biologists who worked on the report took about 700 samples from the river and determined last September that its water was safe to drink, but there are occasional spikes in toxicity levels.

“There may be solutions but they must be demonstrated from a credible and independent source like the BAPE,” said SVP member Anne-Marie Saint-Cerny. “These people aren’t Guinea pigs.”